by Jessica Riffe

Created on: October 21, 2009

Halloween congers up thoughts of ghosts and goblins, jack-o-lanterns, candy corn, and lots of goodies bestowed upon young trick-or-treaters who are dressed in scary costumes. But what does any of this have to do with the origin of this dark and mystical holiday? The answer may surprise you.

The holiday we know as Halloween began over two thousand years ago with the Celtic Druids, who were Celtic priests. The Celts lived in the region that now makes up the United Kingdom, northern France, and Ireland. The last day of the Celtic calendar was October 31. The next day, November 1, was the start of a new cycle. The day was marked by a harvest festival called Samhain (pronounced sow-in) which signified the beginning of winter. Samhain is Gaelic and translates to end of summer. To celebrate Samhain, all the people would dress up in costumes and build huge sacred bonfires. The bonfires were used for burning crops and animals as sacrifices to the Celtic gods. The Celts would use torches from this fire to light their own fireplaces at home later that night, believing that it would help to protect them and also bring blessings and good fortune to them in the New Year.

The Celts also believed that on this day, it became easier for the dead to re-enter the world of the living. They believed that ghosts and spirits came back to this world to roam the streets, wreck havoc on the crops, and also to help the Druids make predictions about the future. To keep the spirits happy, and hopefully to insure that they didn't cause any harm, the people would leave gifts and treats for them out on their doorsteps at night. This is where we get modern day trick or treating.

Years later, as Christianity became more prevalent, the day of Samhain was changed to All Saints Day, and the day before it changed to All Hallows Eve. All Hallows Eve, of course, later became known as Halloween. Many people today believe that some Halloween traditions, such as dressing in costume, are done so in jest to represent the fact that Christians can parody wickedness because they are not influenced by evil.

The modern celebration of Halloween has come a long way from its roots in the festival of Samhain. While it has certainly been tweaked a bit here and there, in many ways it still holds true to its spiritual and supernatural beginnings.

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